Archive

2025

Browsing

Home Depot said Monday that it is buying GMS, a building-products distributor, for about $4.3 billion as the retailer moves to draw more sales from contractors and other home professionals.

Shares of Home Depot were roughly flat in early trading Monday. GMS shares jumped more than 11%.

As part of the deal, the Home Depot-owned subsidiary SRS Distribution will buy all outstanding shares of GMS for $110 per share, which adds up to about $4.3 billion and amounts to total enterprise value including net debt of about $5.5 billion, the company said.

Home Depot said it expects the acquisition to be completed by early 2026.

Home Depot’s announcement also concludes a potential bidding war between the big-box retailer and billionaire Brad Jacobs. Jacobs’ building-products distributor QXO had offered about $5 billion in cash to acquire GMS and said it would press forward with a hostile takeover if the company’s management rejected the proposal.

As Home Depot chases growth, it’s gone after a steadier and more lucrative piece of the home improvement business: electricians, roofers, home renovators and other professionals who tackle large projects year-round and need a lot of supplies. Home Depot said it’s speeding along that strategy with the GMS deal.

Home Depot bought SRS Distribution — the subsidiary that’s acquiring GMS — last year for $18.25 billion, in the largest acquisition in its history. Texas-based SRS sells supplies to professionals in the landscaping, roofing and pool businesses and it has bought up many other smaller suppliers as it’s grown.

Home Depot’s focus on selling to professionals is well-timed. Sales from do-it-yourself customers have slowed as higher mortgage rates have decreased housing turnover and dampened homeowners’ demand for larger projects because of higher borrowing costs.

The company said it expects total sales to grow by 2.8% for the full fiscal year and comparable sales, which take out the impact of one-time factors like store openings and calendar differences, to rise about 1%.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

Teams will take another shot at re-signing their unrestricted free agents before they hit the open market. Restricted free agents could also land new deals.

The 30th is also the deadline for teams to buy out players’ contracts and also to decide whether to give a pending restricted free agent a qualifying offer. Players become unrestricted free agents if they are bought out or don’t get a qualifying offer.

There also could be trades, and the Nashville Predators and Vegas Golden Knights announced one.

Here’s a look at the action on June 30 heading into the July 1 start of NHL free agency:

Panthers reach deal with Brad Marchand, per report

Panthers GM Bill Zito has done it. Not official yet from the Panthers, but Marchand has joined fellow free agents Aaron Ekblad and Sam Bennett in staying with the back-to-back champions. It’s a six-year deal, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, averaging a little over $5 million. Sam Bennett (eight years, $8 million average) and Aaron Ekblad (eight years, $6.1 million) also agreed to team-friendly deals to try to build a dynasty. Marchand, who scored six goals in the Stanley Cup Final, will be 43 when his deal expires.

Blue Jackets reach deal with Ivan Provorov, per report

He’ll get $8.5 million over seven years, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The Blue Jackets get a deal done with two key free agents after earlier re-signing defenseman Dante Fabbro.

Kings re-sign Andrei Kuzmenko for one year

Kuzmenko was traded twice last season but found a fit in Los Angeles. He scored 17 points in 22 games during the regular season and averaged a point a game in the playoffs. He’s making less in the new deal ($4.3 million) than last year ($5.5 million cap hit) but has a chance to bump that up next season if he builds on the end of last season.

Oilers reach deal with Evan Bouchard, per reports

He’ll average $10.5 million in the four-year contract, according to multiple reports. He’ll be the third $10 million player on the Oilers, following Leon Draisaitl ($14 million) and Connor McDavid ($12.5 million), who has another year on his contract. Bouchard averaged $3.9 million in last contract, a two-year bridge deal. During those two years, he totaled 32 goals and 149 points, reaching the Stanley Cup Final both seasons. The four-year deal will allow Bouchard to cash in later as the salary cap continues to rise.

Panthers reach terms with Aaron Ekblad, per report

He’s the second key free agent to return to the two-time champion Panthers. (Sam Bennett was the first and Brad Marchand is the other}. Ekblad takes a hometown discount with eight years at a reported $6.1 million, per TSN. He’s on the top pairing with Gustav Forslund and led the Panthers defense in regular season and playoff scoring despite time missed with suspensions. The Panthers had Seth Jones in case Ekblad left, but the team is much better with both on the blue line.

Islanders re-sign Alexander Romanov

The 25-year-old gets eight years at a reported $6.25 million cap hit. The second pair defenseman blocks shots and is known for his physical play with nearly 900 hits in his career. The Islanders got him locked in after their trade of defenseman Noah Dobson on draft day. New York drafted defenseman Matthew Schaefer No. 1 overall.

Maple Leafs acquire Matias Maccelli from Mammoth

The Mammoth get a conditional 2027 third round pick in return. Maccelli, 24, gets a fresh start after dropping to 18 points in 55 games this past season. But he can provide secondary scoring for Toronto after totaling 106 points over the two seasons before that. If he gets 51 points this season and the Maple Leafs make the playoffs, the third rounder becomes a 2029 second-round pick.

Red Wings trade Vladimir Tarasenko to Wild

Tarasenko has won two Stanley Cup titles but he disappointed with 33 points in his lone season in Detroit while averaging less than 15 minutes a game. He has another year on his contract at $4.75 million, so the Wild get secondary scoring at a reasonable price. Detroit gets future considerations in the deal.

Oilers re-sign forward Kasperi Kapanen

His one-year contract is worth $1.3 million. He scored the series-clinching goal against the Golden Knights in overtime and finished the playoffs with three goals and three assists in 12 games. The Oilers had claimed him off waivers in November.

Predators-Golden Knights trade

The Nashville Predators acquire defenseman Nicolas Hague and a conditional third-round pick from the Golden Knights in exchange for forward Colton Sissons and defenseman Jeremy Lauzon. Nashville will retain 50 percent of Sissons’ salary. If Vegas wins two rounds in the 2026 playoffs, the Golden Knights will move a second-round pick instead.

Hague was a restricted free agent and Vegas needs to clear out cap space to prepare for free agency. He signed a four-year, $22 million contract with Nashville after the trade. He was the Golden Knights’ second round pick in 2017 and is a physical player with 572 hits. Sissons and Lauzon are entering the final years of their contracts.

Bruins re-sign three players

The Boston Bruins re-signed defenseman Henri Jokiharju (three years, $3 million average), forward John Beecher (one year, $900,000) and goaltender Michael DiPietro (two years, $812,500 average). Jokiharju averaged more than 21 minutes a game and had four assists in 18 games after arriving in a trade from the Buffalo Sabres. Beecher had 11 points in 78 games and DiPietro was the American Hockey League goalie of the year.

June 29 signings

Boston’s Morgan Geekie signed a six-year contract ($5.5 million average) after a breakout 33-goal season.
Ottawa Senators forward Claude Giroux signed a bonus-laden one-year deal with a $2 million base salary. The contract can be worth another $2.75 million in bonuses.
Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Dante Fabbro will average $4.125 million in his four-year deal.

Top NHL free agents

Playoff MVP Sam Bennett and other pending free agents have already re-signed. Here’s a list of the top 20 available players.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

On Monday, the Miami Dolphins agreed to a trade that sends the All-Pro cornerback to the Pittsburgh Steelers, according to the cornerback himself. In return, the Dolphins are reuniting with three-time All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, whom they originally drafted in the first round in 2018.

Rumors have been swirling around Ramsey since before the NFL draft, after Miami announced its mutual intentions to seek a trade. As the Dolphins entertained offers, it was unclear which team would come forward with the necessary compensation to complete a deal.

Ramsey still has four years remaining on his deal, including the entirety of a three-year, $72.3 million extension he signed prior to the 2024 season. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the trade to Pittsburgh included a $1.5 million raise for this season. Ramsey is expected to earn $26.6 million in 2025.

Despite his strong play, committing big money to the 30-year-old cornerback likely depressed the market. Still, the deal eventually came to fruition.

According to Over The Cap, Ramsey’s status as a post-June 1 trade means the Dolphins will get a $6.75 million cap hit in each of the next three seasons, plus a nearly $5 million hit in 2028. However, the move also saves them nearly $10 million in 2025 space, $18.3 million in 2026, $20.1 million in 2027, $31.2 million in 2028 and $12.4 million in 2029.

For the Steelers, Ramsey adds to a secondary that already looked strong on paper. Joey Porter Jr. and Beanie Bishop Jr. are two solid young players at cornerback, and veteran Darius Slay also signed on in free agency. With Fitzpatrick going back to the Dolphins as part of the trade, DeShon Elliott and free agent signee Juan Thornhill are expected to start at the two safety spots.

Jalen Ramsey trade details

Steelers receive:

CB Jalen Ramsey
TE Jonnu Smith
2027 seventh-round pick

Dolphins receive:

S Minkah Fitzpatrick
2027 fifth-round pick

It’s a straight-up, player-for-player trade, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The Steelers add a strong piece to their secondary but lose another one. The same goes for the Dolphins, who bring back the safety they drafted with the No. 11 overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

Following the successful return of the college football franchise ― EA Sports College Football 25 ― by EA Sports in the summer of 2024, the company teased the return of the basketball rendition of the video game in a social media post on June 30.

‘Bring the Madness. Let’s run it back,’ the social media post by EA Sports read.

The game will feature both men’s and women’s basketball rosters.

The last installment of the EA College basketball franchise was ‘NCAA Basketball 10,’ which was made for the 2009-10 basketball season and was released on Nov. 17, 2008. The 2009 game featured Oklahoma star Blake Griffin on the cover.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

The Miami Dolphins’ decision to include tight end Jonnu Smith in Monday’s blockbuster Jalen Ramsey-Minkah Fitzpatrick trade has rubbed one former Dolphin the wrong way.

On Monday morning, Miami traded Ramsey and Smith to the Pittsburgh Steelers for Fitzpatrick and a late-round pick swap.

Las Vegas Raiders running back Raheem Mostert, who played for the Dolphins in 2015 and (more notably) from 2022 to 2024, slammed Miami on social media after the trade news broke.

‘Hot take: Be a Pro-bowler on the Dolphins, get treated like s—. Happy for my guys though! GO BALL OUT!!’ Mostert wrote on the social media site X.

Mostert made his first Pro Bowl in 2023, his ninth year as a pro, after leading the league with 18 rushing touchdowns for the Dolphins. That season was also Mostert’s first in which he eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark with 1,012 rushing yards on 209 carries.

Mostert began the 2024 season as Miami’s lead back, but a Week 1 injury kept him out of three subsequent games. By the time he returned, second-year De’Von Achane had done enough to take over the top spot on the depth chart.

The Dolphins released Mostert in February, and he subsequently signed a deal with the Raiders the following month.

The Dolphins’ decision to trade Smith months after he finished his first Pro Bowl season was enough to prompt a public reaction from Mostert, who alludes to feeling like he was treated similarly.

Smith had been in contract negotiations with Miami as he attempted to cash in on the most statistically productive season of his career. He ended up in a trade to Pittsburgh, where he received a one-year, $12 million extension as part of the deal.

The Raiders have not yet released an official depth chart, though Mostert is expected to split carries with rookie Ashton Jeanty in both players’ first year in Las Vegas.

In Pittsburgh, Smith reunites with offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, who has historically enjoyed deploying two-tight-end sets. For at least the next two seasons, Jonnu Smith will likely be paired with tight end Pat Freiermuth in the Steelers’ offense.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

Nine of baseball’s top 22 minor-league prospects – and 31 of the top 50 – will be on display at the 2025 All-Star Futures Game in Atlanta.

Teenage shortstop prospect Leo De Vries of the San Diego Padres is the highest ranked player on MLB Pipeline’s top 100 list, checking in at No. 3 overall. At age 18, the switch-hitter is the youngest player in the High-A Midwest League. He’s posted a .243/.357/.387 slash line this season with five home runs and six stolen bases in 63 games with the Fort Wayne (Indiana) TinCaps.

Joining De Vries on the National League squad managed by Braves Hall of Famer Chipper Jones will be Phillies pitcher Andrew Painter (No. 5), St. Louis Cardinals shortstop JJ Weatherholt (No. 16), Milwaukee Brewers infielder Jesus Made (No. 18) and Rockies slugger Charlie Condon (No. 22).

The American League team, managed by former Braves outfielder Marquis Grissom, is headlined by three Detroit Tigers prospects: Outfielder Max Clark (No. 7 overall), shortstop Kevin McGonigle (No. 21) and catcher/first baseman Josue Briceño (No. 73).

Also on the AL squad are Texas Rangers shortstop Sebastian Wolcott (No. 9) and Chicago White Sox left-hander Noah Schultz (No. 13).

How to watch MLB Futures Game

The 26th annual All-Star Futures Game will be played at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 12, at Truist Park in Atlanta.

TV: MLB Network

Streaming: MLB.TV, MLB.com

Announcers: Melanie Newman (play-by-play), Yonder Alonso (analyst), Jonathan Mayo (analyst) and Sande Charles (reporter)

2025 Futures Game rosters

American League

Pitchers

29 Cijntje, Jurrangelo (SEA)
24 Gillies, Keagan (BAL)
23 Hopkins, Brody (TB)
18 Jump, Gage (ATH)
41 Klassen, George (LAA)
26 Messick, Parker (CLE)
17 Mozzicato, Frank (KC)
36 Santa, Alimber (HOU)
22 Schultz, Noah (CWS)
34 Yesavage, Trey (TOR)

Catchers

34 Briceño, Josue (DET)
6 Ford, Harry (SEA)
17 Jensen, Carter (KC)

Infielders

24 Culpepper, Kaelen (MIN)
12 Kayfus, CJ (CLE)
2 Lombard Jr., George (NNY)
5 Matthews, Brice (HOU)
21 McGonigle, Kevin (DET)
1 Walcott, Sebastian (TEX)
23 White, Tommy (ATH)

Outfielders

23 Bradfield Jr., Enrique (BAL)
13 Clark, Max (DET)
23 Garcia, Jhostynxon (BOS)
33 Montes, Lazaro (SEA)
14 Montgomery, Braden (CWS)

National League

Pitchers

55 Grissom Jr. Marquis (WSH)
99 Harris, Hayden (ATL)
16 Painter, Andrew (PHI)
60 Ritchie, JR (ATL)
13 Sykora, Travis (WSH)
16 Tong, Jonah (NYM)
39 Whisenhunt, Carson (SF)
28 White, Thomas (MIA)
41 Wiggins, Jaxon (CHC)

Catchers

16 Duno, Alfredo (CIN)
8 Mack, Joe (MIA)
13 Tait, Eduardo (PHI)

Infielders

24 Condon, Charlie (COL)
24 De Vries Leo (SD)
28 Griffin, Konnor (PIT)
4 Groover, LuJames (AZ)
12 Made, Jesús (MIL)
16 Stewart, Sal (CIN)
26 Wetherholt, JJ (STL)

Outfielders

10 Benge, Carson (NYM)
17 Caissie, Owen (CHC)
5 Caldwell, Slade (AZ)
46 De Paula Josue (LAD)
51 Hope, Zyhir (LAD)
44 Valdez, Esmerlyn (PIT)

This post appeared first on USA TODAY

President Donald Trump signed an executive order to formally lift all sanctions on Syria on Monday afternoon. 

‘The United States is committed to supporting a Syria that is stable, unified, and at peace with itself and its neighbors,’ the order stated, while directing the secretaries of State, Commerce and Treasury to relieve sanctions and waive export controls. 

‘This is in an effort to promote and support the country’s path to stability and peace. The order will remove sanctions on Syria while maintaining sanctions on the former president Assad or his associates, human rights abusers, drug traffickers, persons linked to chemical weapons activities, ISIS and their affiliates, and Iranian proxies,’ White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters. 

Trump is ‘committed to supporting a Syria that is stable, unified and at peace with itself and its neighbors,’ Leavitt said. 

Ambassador Tom Barrack, Trump’s envoy to Syria, called the new order a ‘tedious, detailed, excruciating process’ of unraveling the sanctions that had been in place for decades on the regime of Bashar al-Assad, who oversaw a nation at civil war for more than a decade. 

Brad Smith, the Treasury Department’s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said sanctions would remain ‘where appropriate,’ including on Assad and his associates and any other destabilizing regional actors. 

Smith said the fall of Assad represented a ‘new beginning’ for the Syrian people and Trump had decided U.S. sanctions ‘would not stand in the way of what could be a brighter future for the country.’

But he warned: ‘The United States will remain ever vigilant where our interests and security are threatened, and Treasury will not hesitate to use our authorities to protect us and international financial systems.’

Some sanctions will still need to be lifted by Congress, and others date to 1979, when Syria was designated a state sponsor of terrorism. The administration has not yet lifted that designation. 

Trump met last month with Syria’s new interim leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, during a Middle East visit. 

From having a $10 million bounty on his head to sitting down with the U.S. president, the turnaround of the Syrian leader has been remarkable.

Al-Sharaa’s group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a Syrian militant organization founded as an offshoot of al Qaeda, overthrew Assad in March. 

Al-Sharaa had been campaigning hard for a relationship with Washington and sanctions relief: he offered to build a Trump Tower in Damascus, détente with Israel, and U.S. access to Syria’s oil and gas. He worked to soften the image of HTS and promised an inclusive governing structure. 

U.S. sanctions have included financial penalties on any foreign individual or company that provided material support to the Syrian government and prohibited anyone in the U.S. from dealing in any Syrian entity, including oil and gas. Syrian banks also were effectively cut off from global financial systems. 

The new order comes as Israeli and Syrian officials are engaged in back-channel talks on a potential security and normalization deal. 

Israel and Syria have long been foes, and some Israeli officials worry that lifting all sanctions on Syria means giving up ‘leverage’ to pressure them into a deal to normalize ties with Israel. 

To that point, one senior administration official shot back: ‘We have consistently said we’re not nation-building. It’s to Syria’s benefit to lean toward Israel.’ 

‘The president ripped off the sanctions without any preconditions,’ the official said. ‘Leverage is not what we’re interested in doing.’ 

War between Israel and Hamas in Gaza has complicated any movement on normalization deals between Israel and its neighbors. But the official predicted: ‘There’s going to be peace in Gaza.’ 

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

Members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus are warning they have serious issues with the Senate’s version of President Donald Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ as it’s currently written.

The group of GOP rebels argued in a public statement on Sunday that the Senate bill adds $1.3 trillion to the federal deficit, whereas the House-passed bill would increase the federal deficit by $72 billion.

‘Even without interest costs, it is $651 billion over our agreed budget framework,’ the statement read.

The Senate is currently working through the bill and is expected to finish sometime later Monday or even on Tuesday. 

The Senate bill would add an extra $1 trillion to raise the debt limit, compared to the House version and permanently extend certain corporate tax cuts in President Donald Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) that the House only extended temporarily.

It also includes several specific new additions aimed at easing Senate Republicans’ own concerns with the bill, including a $25 billion rural hospital fund to offset issues with Medicaid cuts, and a tax break for whalers that appears aimed at Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska.

The Senate is operating under a mechanism called ‘current policy baseline,’ which would effectively zero-out the cost of extending TCJA tax cuts by calculating them as the de facto operational policy rather than calculating the cost as if they were not in place.

Absent congressional action, TCJA tax cuts expire at the end of 2025.

Conservatives in the House have warned they have serious issues with the bill, however. 

Reps. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., and Eric Burlison, R-Mo., both House Freedom Caucus members, said the bill could face steep odds — even fail — in the lower chamber if changes were not made.

Both said it could fail in a House-wide procedural vote before lawmakers could even contend with the measure itself. A rule vote is traditionally taken to allow for debate on legislation before lawmakers weigh in on it.

‘If it gets through [the House Rules Committee], I don’t think it survives on the floor in the current form it’s in. You know, we told the senators that,’ Norman told Fox News Digital. ‘They knew this all along.’

Norman said Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., had done a ‘good job,’ but added of the Senate, ‘They’ve got fighters… but we’ve just got to have certain things that comply with our House version.’

The legislation could still change before it gets to the House, however, as the Senate works through a parade of amendments from both Democrats and Republicans.

Burlison said it could depend on the fate of an amendment by Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., which would significantly hike the Medicaid financial burden for states that expanded their Medicaid population under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). 

The change, if passed, would roll back the current 90% rate that the government pays for the Medicaid expansion population through the federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) back down to the non-expansion rate, which hovers as low as 50%.

Scott’s proposal could add hundreds of billions in savings to the plan, in addition to the nearly $1 trillion the Senate plan already saves in Medicaid spending.

‘I don’t see how what the Senate is doing will pass the House if [Rick Scott’s amendment] does not pass at the minimum. It’s probably going to take more spending reductions than that, but that would get the majority of us there,’ Burlison told Fox News Digital, without commenting on House GOP leaders.

He predicted the bill could be ‘killed’ in the House-wide rule vote otherwise.

Indeed, several House Freedom Caucus members have taken to X to publicly urge Senate Republicans to approve Scott’s amendment.

‘All Republican Senators should vote YES on Senator Rick Scott’s very reasonable ‘elimination of theft from Medicaid’ FMAP amendment,’ Rep. Clay Higgins, R-La., posted.

Fox News Digital reached out to Speaker Mike Johnson’s office for comment on House Freedom Caucus members’ comments.

Notably, key provisions originally in the House bill were stripped out of the legislation for not being ‘Byrd-compliant.’

The ‘Byrd Bath’ is a process during the budget reconciliation process in which the Senate parliamentarian, a non-partisan, unelected official tasked with advising on Senate policy, combs through the bill for whether it adheres to the strict budgetary guidelines of the reconciliation process.

Republicans are using the budget reconciliation process to advance Trump’s agenda on taxes, the border, energy, defense, and the debt limit via one massive piece of legislation.

Budget reconciliation allows Republicans to bypass any Democratic opposition to pass their bill by lowering the Senate’s threshold for passage from 60 votes to 51.

They’re aiming to have a bill on Trump’s desk by the Fourth of July.

A GOP aide told Fox News Digital, ‘The Senate version contains more in Byrd-compliant savings than the House, and correctly scores extending current tax policy as revenue-neutral — and assumes the kind of growth that was also massively underestimated last time around.’

The aide noted that the White House Council of Economic Advisers said the bill will generate $4.1 trillion in economic growth thanks to tax permanence, which is more than the House version.

Senate Republicans argue the bill would lead to $1.6 trillion in spending cuts over 10 years — above the House Freedom Caucus’ demanded $1.5 trillion threshold.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

The State Department has revoked the visas for members of the Bob Vylan band, after the British punk-rap duo called for ‘death to the IDF’ during a Saturday performance in England’s Glastonbury Music Festival. 

The band Bob Vylan, made up of two musicians with the stage names Bobby Vylan and Bobbie Vylan, is slated to tour the U.S. later in 2025. But the State Department announced Monday it had pulled the visas for the band’s members after the group led chants calling for the end of the Israel Defense Forces. 

‘Bob Vylan’s visas have been revoked,’ a senior State Department official told Fox News Digital Monday. ‘The secretary of state has been clear – the U.S. will not approve visas for terrorist sympathizers.’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has issued multiple warnings that the State Department will rescind visas for ‘terrorists’ and those affiliated with them. 

For example, Rubio said in a June 2 X post after the antisemitic terror attack in Boulder, Colorado, that all ‘terrorists, their family members, and terrorist sympathizers’ in the U.S. on a visa would have their visas revoked and face deportation. 

During the Glastonbury, England, performance, Bobby Vylan also led the crowd with chants of ‘Free, Free, Free Palestine,’ and wrapped up the chant saying, ‘Hell yeah, from the river to the sea. Palestine must be, will be inshallah, it will be free.’

In response, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said, ‘There is no excuse for this kind of appalling hate speech,’ according to the BBC. 

Meanwhile, Bobby Vylan appeared to double down on his statements during the Glastonbury performance, and wrote in a social media post Sunday: ‘I said what I said.’

‘It is incredibly important that we encourage and inspire future generations to pick up the torch that was passed to us,’ Bobby Vylan said in a Sunday Instagram post. ‘Let us display to them loudly and visibly the right thing to do when we want and need change. Let them see us marching in the streets, campaigning on ground level, organizing online and shouting about it on any and every stage that we are offered.’

Additionally, the BBC issued a Monday statement apologizing for continuing to air Bob Vylan’s performance live, and condemned the antisemitic chants during the performance. 

‘The team were dealing with a live situation but with hindsight we should have pulled the stream during the performance. We regret this did not happen,’ the BBC said in a Monday statement. ‘The BBC respects freedom of expression but stands firmly against incitement to violence. The antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves.’

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

The SEC spends too much of its football schedule on easy street. That’s the Big Ten’s stance, as articulated recently by Illinois coach Bret Bielema. Bielema conveyed the mood of his conference when he called on the SEC to play a ninth conference game.

If the Big Ten successfully strong-arms the SEC into reducing its number of cupcake opponents, that will be a win for college football.

The stubborn persistence of non-conference pushover games remains one of this sport’s lamest elements, and no conference plays more patsies than the SEC.

The surest way to reduce the number of cupcakes would be to increase the number of conference games. It’s not the only way, but it’s the firmest path. Left to their own devices, some schools will pursue the greatest number of non-conference cakewalks.

So, I wish the Big Ten luck in its mission to bend the SEC toward nine conference games, a figure that would match the number played by the Big Ten and Big 12.

And yet, I wonder whether the Big Ten will come to regret trying to bully the SEC on its schedule. Because, I see this ending one of two ways.

Possibility 1: The SEC will dig in its heels, rebuff the Big Ten, and remain at eight conference games.

If this occurs, it will show that the Big Ten doesn’t possess the power it must think it has to influence other conferences. Wouldn’t be the first time this happened, either. Remember when the Big Ten chose to cancel its 2020 season amid the pandemic. How’d that turn out? The SEC decided it would play in 2020, and the Big Ten came crawling back to play a truncated season, revealing itself a follower in 2020, not a leader.

More recently, the Big Ten supported a playoff format rigged with a stacked deck of auto bids. When the SEC soured on the plan, the Big Ten’s idea withered on the vine.

Possibility 2: The SEC will accept the Big Ten’s challenge to play a ninth conference game and reap the reward by building strength of schedule metrics that dwarf most of the Big Ten.

The SEC repeatedly has proven itself too chicken to add a ninth conference game. The reasons change, but the result remains the same: Eight conference games. The SEC’s reluctance to add another conference game amounts to an irrational fear of the boogeyman. If it ever takes the plunge, it would learn that the rewards offset outweigh the risks.

The SEC waged an offseason propaganda campaign claiming that the College Football Playoff selection committee does not value its schedule strength. That’s hogwash.

In truth, the CFP committee has repeatedly valued the SEC’s schedule strength. If the playoff had included 16 teams last season, the SEC would have qualified three 9-3 teams and six teams total, while no other conference supplied a three-loss team.

The SEC wishes for the selection process to evolve so that strength of schedule metrics are weighted even more in the future, when determining at-large playoff bids. If it achieves that mission and also beefs up its schedule with another conference game, while the playoff expands to 16 teams, look out, Big Ten. The runway would be greased for a cavalcade of 9-3 playoff teams from the SEC.

Plus, adding another conference game would help distinguish the SEC’s wheat from its chaff, helping ensure that the best SEC teams made the playoff.

As it is, the Big Ten owns one upper-hand on the SEC in the rhetoric wars that surround at-large bids: Its membership plays one extra conference game, and most of its members play 10 Power Four opponents, while most SEC teams play nine Power Four foes.

If the SEC adds a ninth conference game, the Big Ten would surrender that upper-hand.

By trying to persuade the SEC to expand its conference schedule, though, the Big Ten must believe another potential outcome exists.

Such as:

Possibility 3: A ninth SEC game would cause the conference to buckle under the weight of its collective strength, losses will mount, thereby reducing the number of SEC teams with playoff résumés and allowing more access for the Big Ten.

Is this possible? Yes.

Probable? No.

The committee already values strength of schedule, and the SEC’s scheduling would be beyond reproach if it added another conference game.

Vanderbilt shocking Alabama and Kentucky upsetting a top-five opponent on the road are exceptions in the SEC, not rules. Despite those results in 2024, Alabama and Mississippi would have qualified for a 16-team playoff as three-loss teams. Now, imagine if Alabama and Ole Miss had inserted another win against an SEC opponent in place of a blowout against Championship Subdivision roadkill.

That would have enhanced each team’s credentials, and yet, that’s what the Big Ten seems to want. It calls on the SEC to enhance its collective strength of schedule, at an inflection point when strength of schedule could be valued more than ever in the playoff selection process.

Careful what you wish for, Big Ten. In 2020, when teams played conference-only schedules, the SEC put four teams in the top nine of the final CFP rankings. Playing more SEC games sure didn’t hamper the league that year.

If the Big Ten gets its way, and the SEC adds another conference game in place of a cupcake, that would buoy college football. Just don’t think it helps the Big Ten.

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.

This post appeared first on USA TODAY